Transitioning From Chemically Treated & Heat Damaged Hair

I transitioned my relaxed hair back to naturally curly coily hair once when I was young, yet have big chopped (cut off all of my hair) a total of four different times for different reasons. I cut off all of my hair the first time because I wanted to feel beautiful without hair, the second time for severely color damaged hair, the third time after having started locing my hair after a year and a half, and the fourth time again to remove all of the chemically colored hair after doing a hair industrial. If you are wanting to grow your hair long and healthy and transition from chemically treated or heat damaged hair, here are 15 tips to help you do just that.

1. Stop Using Shampoo

Shampoo is not our friend. Shampoos especially with sulfate ingredients leave a film behind on the hair strands and completely strip the hair because sulfates are strong detergents. When you strip the hair completely you leave it bare, dry, and brittle hoping that the conditioning process with replenish all that was removed.

Instead of continuing this vicious cycle, using natural and gentle cleanser such as rhassoul or bentonite clay, yucca root etc. will gently cleanse and soften your hair simultaneously. You may even want to try the DIY Cleansing Conditioner. You can also read more about these natural hair cleanser in this article. You can also conditioner wash you hair which will add moisture and ease with the detangling process. You can read about my favorite natural conditioners here.

2. Tension Free Hair Styling

If you are transitioning from chemically treated hair, your hair is especially weak at the demarcation line (where your natural hair and chemically treated hair connect). It is important to keep your new growth stretched and blended with your chemically treated hair. Create heat-less curls with braid outs, twist outs, and roller sets if you have naturally curly coily hair. Heat-less curls are also a great way to hide heat damaged hair. Wearing your hair in tension free up-do styles which do not pull at the roots of your hair is also important. You can always add a headband to make the front look smooth.

3. Slowly Trim Off Damaged Hair

Our hair grows an average of 1/2 inch per month. If you desire a slow transition from chemically treated or heat damaged hair, trim off 1/2 inch of hair per month. In essence your hair will not be loosing any inches and you will not have to experience a dramatic cut in the end. Depending upon how curly coily your hair is, you may begin to notice shrinkage as more of your heat damaged and chemically treated hair is cut off.

If you’ve never trimmed your own hair then this tutorial will give you confidence. If your hair is short I would only do step one of this tutorial as a U-cut looks best on longer hair. It is always easier to manage hair with bluntly cut ends which is why slowly trimming your hair monthly will help with the transitioning process.

4. Keep Hair Moisturized

Moisturize your hair daily. Using a spray bottle filled with aloe vera and distilled water or the DIY Leave-In Conditioner, you can literally only spritz the roots of your hair, or lightly spritz all of your hair to keep them soft and hydrated. Use an oil to seal in the moisture. If your hair is really thick you may want to use shea butter to seal in the moisture. Keeping your hair moisturized will help prevent hair breakage.

5. Deep Condition Hair Weekly

You can deep condition your hair with your favorite conditioner adding oils or even make your own deep conditioner with natural ingredients such as coconut milk, avocados, bananas (preferably organic banana baby food) etc. Deep conditioning your hair will keep it strong, manageable, and help you maintain moisture in your hair. For more natural conditioning ideas read this article.

6. Henna Treatments

Henna is a natural and permanent hair dye which conditions the hair like no other. Henna deposits into the weak and damaged areas of hair strands creating stronger shiny hair. Unless henna is mixed with cassia or indigo, the color it provides is red. The hue of henna on dark brown to black hair will only show as red highlights mainly seen in sunlight. On lighter hair henna will give a natural red hair color.

I use henna as a monthly deep conditioning treatment to keep my hair strong and manageable. I’ve read on hair forums that some use henna as a means to stretch relaxer applications as it makes the new growth more manageable, yet for transitioning from relaxed hair I feel this will also be very helpful. I only mix henna with coconut milk which I explain in this article. You can also read in detail how I use henna here. Deep condition hair after using henna every time.

7. Chemically Treated/Heat Damaged Hair Weighs Down Hair Strands

If you have naturally curly coily hair with chemically treated or heat damaged ends, your hair will not show it’s true curls and coils until the damaged hair is completely cut off. I have a friend who had heat damaged hair and began wearing her hair curly again. Her hair still curled some yet it wasn’t until she got past her fear and finally cut off all of the damage that her curls popped. Her hair looked drastically curlier and very beautiful!

8. Use Gentle Hair Tools & Treat Hair Gently

Use a wide tooth comb for detangling as well as incorporate finger detangling into your routine. Finger detangling takes longer especially when you are first learning how to so it but will allow less breakage over time. Also avoid hair styling accessories with metal, hair pins with broken tips, and especially rubber bands which will snag and break hair strands. Instead use seamless hair bands, hair pins with smooth tips, and other gentle friendly hair accessories such as satin hair scrunchies. Also treat your hair like a fine lace. No matter how strong you think your hair is, it is better to care for your hair delicately and with patience.

9. Soften Hair With The Baggy Method

One of the easiest ways to soften your hair is by lightly spritzing your hair with water and coating the hair with a light layer of oil. Braid hair into at least four sections and cover with a conditioning cap overnight. You can use this method as a styling method for a braid out by adding rollers to the ends of your hair and allowing your hair to completely dry before removing or as a pre-wash treatment.

10. Protective Styling & Up-Dos

If detangling your hair is a struggle, wearing your hair in styles where it can’t move around and tangle is crucial. There are so many beautiful up-do styles that you do that will keep your hair protected from the cold weather, wind, and sun. Also up-dos are a great way to hide heat damaged and transitioning hair. If you are transitioning and the two textures of your hair are greatly showing, you can use heat-less curl styles such as braid or twist outs to blend the two textures and then put your hair in a beautiful up-do.

11. Always Care For & Style Hair In Sections

It is easier to manage hair in sections. I always do my hair in four sections. I wash, condition, and style my hair in these four sections. I detangle my hair in eight sections so I am not trying to manage all of my hair at the same time. Even if you only use two sections you will notice more ease in your hair care process.

12. Wear A Satin/Silk Scarf Every Night

Wearing a satin/silk scarf at night allows your hair to maintain moisture and also prevents friction while sleeping and hair breakage. I also believe it greatly helps to braid or even twist hair up at night to prevent the mobility of your hair. If wearing a scarf isn’t your thing, sleep on a satin/silk pillowcase instead.

13. Read Product Ingredients

It is very important to avoid products with drying ingredients such as alcohols and silicones. Alcohol obviously is drying to hair, yet silicones prevent moisture from penetrating the hair once the product with silicone is applied. Daily moisturizing after using a product with silicones will not help with retaining moisture in your hair. Here is a list of ingredients to avoid for your overall health as well. By reading your product ingredients you will also learn more about what ingredients work well for your hair.

14. Don’t Use Heat On Your Hair

If you have damaged hair using heat on your hair will only continue set backs on your healthy hair journey. Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius and 212 degrees Fahrenheit. I’ve never seen a heat appliance that works without boiling the water out of your hair. Using heat on your hair only removes the much needed hydration and causes dry brittle hair. Using heat-less curl styles along with air drying is best for healthy hair.

15. Be Patient

No matter whether your hair is heat damaged or you are transitioning to naturally curly coily hair, nothing happens overnight. Being patient with the transitioning process is vital. Also when you are nursing your hair back to health you can not expect it to look like vibrant healthy hair right away. This is why finding beautiful up-do hairstyles is so helpful. Wearing your hair up will keep your hands out of your hair throughout the day and also keep your critical eye far from it whenever you look in the mirror. Have patience and do your best to enjoy your healthy hair process!

Do you have any other tips for transitioning from chemically treated or heat damaged hair?

(Image by D Sharon Pruitt)

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I’ve heat damaged hair that needs trimming to get rid of the gross ends. I like your trimming idea to keep my current length in the meantime. I also put away my flat iron for heatless styles. Thanks for this!

I’ve been using traditional shampoo and conditioner for as long as I can remember, but I would really like to try a clay in conjunction with an herbal hair rinse because I have such oily hair (due to over-cleansing?). My hair products were always relatively clean, and I was wondering if you would still suggest detoxing with bentonite clay. I think I’d like to use rhassoul in the long run, but I’d just like to know what you suggest. Thanks!

Using any clay to cleanse your hair will help to detox your hair. I think that detoxing the hair is really helpful since it will take some time for your hair to adjust to a new regimen. Bentonite clay swells differently than rhassoul clay which is much more slippery in a way since it is so high in silica. Both are really wonderful clays though and either one will work well too.

For your first couple of hair washes you may want to actually do more of a clay mask by creating a yogurt like consistency with your clay and leaving it in your hair for at least 20-30 minutes, cover with a conditioning cap, and then rinse thoroughly. The conditioning cap will help keep moisture in your hair and not allow the clay to dry hard which will make it take longer to rehydrate and rinse. Later on you may like to make a more liquid-like mixture for your clay hair wash which you can put into an applicator bottle for easy use in the shower. I personally prefer to mix clays with aloe vera and sometimes apple cider vinegar if I’m up for the potent scent and using bentonite clay. Using an acidic mixture with clay creates the ideal pH for hair. When I use herbal hair cleansers mixing with distilled or filtered water works perfectly.

If you have longer hair it will be easier to hide your transition because you can wear updos. With oily hair stretching out the days in between when you wash your hair is helpful. If you can find a natural fiber brush/comb (bamboo, wood, boar bristle, goat hair, etc) it will help to distribute the natural oils from your scalp throughout your hair. Scalp massages and hair tools created with natural materials really help with the transition and in general. If you have curly hair a bamboo/wood pin brush or wide tooth seamless wooden comb may work the best.

Because we are all very unique much of this process of transitioning away from commercial products is trial and error. You will be breaking the cycle of drying out your hair with chemical and detergent shampoos (or even alkaline castile soaps and shampoo bars), and then having to replace all of your natural hair oils with synthetic conditioners. It is a wonderful feeling to be free from commercial hair products so definitely go for it.

Hi Dawn,
Your blogs are amazing!:)
I have fine silky super curly hair, however recently I got suckered into getting a Brazilian blowout and lost half my curls and thickness of hair 🙁 My question is will using natural hair caring methods like deep conditioning with coconut/olive or castor oils and cleaning out hair with shikakai help in removing BB treatment from my hair or should I just be patient and let it take its time ? I would really like to know your suggestion on this. Thanks!
PS: your hair is gorgeous!
Thanks for your great blog.

I’m so sorry that you had this experience with a salon hair treatment. I do not know too much about the Brazilian Blowout except that it is a chemical treatment. I always suggest nurturing your hair with natural ingredients and products to restore your hair health. My first suggestion is definitely deep conditioning your hair. You may also need to slowly trim your hair (1/4-1/2 inch or even a bit less if you choose) each month to remove the chemically treated hair over time.

I’m not sure if this treatment will “wear off” or if it is permanent. Here are some natural conditioners/conditioning treatments that you may be interested in. Let me know if you have other questions and keep me posted on your progress.

Hi Kim,
Relaxed hair has been chemically altered and can not be changed back to its natural state. If you are interested in enjoying your natural curly hair, transitioning is the best way. It will take patience yet it is worth it. In the meantime you can wear braid outs, twist outs, and roller sets to help disguise the two textures of hair as you transition. There are also a lot of other ladies sharing their experiences online and on YouTube transitioning to natural and curly hair.
Best wishes!

Hi Dawn, I have thick curly hair, but I use commercial hair products along with heat so much that it’s a huge mess lol. I’ve never had a perm in my life but I’m so tired of heat damge hair. It makes it very hard to do natural styles. I was wondering if you can give me a few suggestions for styles while transitioning and natural hair products for an affordable budget?

One of the best ways to begin transitioning heat damaged curly hair is to begin to only style your hair with heat-less curls using either braid outs, twist outs, or roller/flexi rod sets. You can also trim your hair slowly over time as suggested above in the article. It is very important that you stop using heat on your hair so that as your hair continues to grow you are no longer enduring further heat damage.

If you are interested in creating a simple natural hair regimen you can check out this chemical-free hair care series that will provide you with a ton on information. It has four articles total which will give you more info than I can write again here. Make sure that you deep condition your hair as well. There are simple deep conditioner ideas in the chemical-free hair series.

You can also check out my latest hair care regimen explained here, and see what I am currently using in my hair care here. Best wishes with everything!

Hey Dawn:)
I got my hair smoothened last year in June and they said it would stay for an year. I had really frizzy wavy hair and could not keep them open. Now I’m noticing that my hair isn’t growing at all. I oil my hair once a week but no results. I really want long hair. Please could you suggest something?
Thank you

Is it possible that you are not seeing any growth in your hair because the chemical process damaged your hair some? Your hair may be breaking off at the ends more than you are retaining the length that is growing from your scalp. If this is the case deep conditioning your hair often and trimming any damaged ends may be a really good start. Two simple deep conditioners are either coconut milk or a blended/strained banana with water. You can see more ideas here.

Also keeping your hair and ends moisturized would also be wonderful. This will help prevent breakage. Before adding any oil to you hair just spritz it with water or aloe vera juice for moisture. You then seal in the moisture with the oil that you enjoy using. Keep me posted and have a great day!

Hi Felicia,
Our hair is the last thing to get nutrients from the food we eat. It’s actually a good thing because I’d rather the nutrients go to my vital life giving organs first. Eating a whole foods diet free of all processed foods can make a big difference in your hair and your life in general. You can read more on that here.

As for hair care, I’m all about natural DIY hair care and most recently incorporating water only hair washing into my regimen so that I also have the natural oils from my scalp assisting the conditioning process. Check out this series on all natural hair care and also this one on water only and see what resonates with you. If you have another question let me know. <3

Mam…I was so foolish that I smoothened my hair 5 days back (my previous hair was soft and fluffy )I feel my hair is too silky and looks oilyand the tip ends are disgusting..I ve recently started growing my hair for my husband…now I feel so annoyed of cutting the length …pls do help me to get my fluffy hair back…is there any way to wash out the chemical used in …..

Hi vaishnavi SRIDHAR,
Once a chemical process has been applied to the hair, it can’t be removed. Every day we learn more about what we do and don’t want with daily choices and it is perfectly okay. Nurturing yourself and your hair during this transition to healthy virgin hair is what matters most now. You can find lots of all natural hair care options in this series and definitely take into account the hair care tips in this article above. Wishing you the best!

Years of using hot combs, straighteners, etc as well as chemical relaxers – my hair was damaged and just looked dull. I stopped getting hair compliments I used to get. A friend recommended I try Shielo products, and the combination of the Shielo Smoothing shampoo/conditioner and the Shielo Restore Mist has helped bring it back to life. They have some special oils in them that my hair really responded to – and I LOVE how my hair looks and feels now. I can definitely see a change since using them. AND I am getting compliments again!